Machine for making lock washers



June 3, 1930 F. H. SLI-:EMR v gfzzw MACHINE FOR MAKING LOCK WSHERSwn/r11. .57e ep@ Ju'ne 3, 1930. F. H. SLEEPER 1,761,279

MACHINE FOR MAKING LOCK WASHERS Filed Maron 4. 192e 3 sneetssneetf 2'maw June 3,'1930. F. H. SLEEPER 1,761,279

lMACHINE FOR MAKING LOCK WASHE'RS Filed March 4, 1926 3 Shes-Sheet 3 A Kzy@ 3 /zz 65 /z 69 EN E my Patented June 3, 1930 UNITED 'STATES PATENTOFFICE FRANK H. SLEEPER, `OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TOSLEEPER &

v HARTLEY, INC., OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MASSACHU-SETTS MACHINE FOR MAKING `LOCK WASHERS Application filed March 4,1926.Serial No. 92,258.

My invention relates to the production of lock washers by the severance,at intervals, of coiled metal, whereby to'form lock washers of the typewhich consists of one or more convolutions, with the ends of the washers`displaced from each other.

By my invention, there is provided an improved machine that is adaptedto feed and continuously form the metal stock into a spiral, and atpredetermined intervalswitliout interrupting the coiling operation, tosever washers from-this spiral with the desired number of convolutionsin each washer. My machine isA particularly characterized by itscompactness and simplicity, as well as by the ease with which it may bevadjusted to coil and sever lock washers of different diameters and withdifferent numbers of convolutions. The above and other advantageousfeatures of my invention will hereinafter more fully appear, referencebeinghad to the accompanying drawings in which- Fig 1 is a view in frontelevation of a machine embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a view in side elevation of the machine shown in Fig.' 1,certain portions being shown in section.

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view along the line 3 8 of Fig. 2,looking in the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view along the line 44of Fig. 2,looking in the direc-Y tion of the arrows.-

Fig. 5 1s a vertical sectional View along the line 5-'5 of Fig. 1,looking in the direc- Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, the machine comprisesa suitable base 1 providing up-l wardly extending standards 2 and 3between which a drive shaft 4 is rotatably mounted. The shaft 4 isadapted to be driven in any suitable manner, as by means of a pulley 5-'carrying a belt 6 connected to asuitalole source of power not shown.The usual. provision is made for disconnecting the shaft 4 from itssource of power, as by means of a beltshifter 7 which is adapted to movethe belt 6 from the driving pulley 5 to an idler pulley 8.

The drive shaft 4 carries a pinion 9 in mesh with a gear 10 mounted onashaft 1l suitably journalled in the standards 2 and 3.

As best shown in Fig. 3,-'the shaft 11 carries a gear 12 adjacent to thestandard 2, which gear 12 is in mesh with gear teeth 13 provided onsleeves 14 that are rotatably supported in the standard 2. As best shown1n Fig. 5, each gear sleeve 14 is provided with a central opening havingslots,v 15 extending longitudinally thereof, and each gear sleeve 14 isadapted to'receive thereduced end por` tion 16 of a shaft 17. In forminglthe reduced portion 16 of each shaft 17, a number of splines 18 areprovided corresponding in number to the slots 15, and as the splines 18are rounded, each shaft 17 is capable of limited universal movement withrespect to its supporting gear sleeve 14 in addition to longitudinalmovement.

Each shaft 17 extends loosely through an i opening 19 in the frontstandard 3 and is rotatably supported by means of anantifrictionswiveled bearing 20 carried by a bearing block 21. Thebearing blocks 21 are held apart b springs 22 shown in Fi s. 1 and 5,and t e distance between the s afts 17 is determined by set screws 23and v24. The upper set screw 23 limits the upward movement of thebearingl block 21 for the uppershaft 17 while the lower set screw 24serves to support the bearing block 21 of the lower shaft-17.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 5, each shaft 17 carries a coiling roll 25provided with a groove 26, and these rolls 25 are supported above andbelow a coiling mandrel 27 withy their grooves 26 offset longitudinallyof the mandrel so as to confine the stock thereon in the form of a coil.The ceiling mandrel 27 is received in a shaft 28 which extendsrearwardly through the standard 3 and is rotatably supported near itsend in a bearing 28a carried by a bracket 29 secured to the rearstandard 2. The shaft 28 carries a pinion 30 in mesh with a gear 31carried on a countershaft 32 which extends rearwardly through thestandard 2 and .is journalled therein, see Fig. 3. The countershaft 32carriesa pinion 33 in mesh with a gear 34 mounted on the shaft 1`1,whereby the mandrel 27 is adapted to be driven in unison with theceiling roll shafts 17, but at a different speed, determined by thediameter of the washers being coiled, as will be hereinafter more fullydescribed.

As best shown in Figs. 2 and 4, the drive shaft 4 carries a pinion 35which is adapted to drive a shaft 36 extending parallel thereto throughchange gears 37 carried by countershafts 38,the direction of rotation ofthe shaft 36 being indicatedI by the small arrow. As shown in Fig. 2,the shaft 36 is journalled in a boss 39 extending upwardly from the base1 and carries a bevel gear 40 at its other end, which is in mesh with abevel gear 41 carried by a vertical shaft 42. The

shaft 42 is journaled in a forwardly extend ing bracket 43 and carriesat its upper end a feed roll 44. An idler feed roll 45 is adapted tohold the stock 28 in engagement with the periphery of the positivelydriven feed roll 44 by means of a set screw 46 engaging the bearing ofthe shaft 47 on which the' roll 45 is mounted. The stock S is directedbetween the rolls 44 and 45 by means of a plate 48 secured to thebracket 43 and provided with an opening of substantially the same crosssection as the stock, which may be round or rectangular as desired.

Rotation of the roll 44 in cooperation with the roll 45 is adapted tofeed the stock S into a guide 49 which is interposed between the mandrel27 and the feed rolls and provides a longitudinal groove 50. The guide49 is carried on the standard 3 by a block 51 adjustable on the standardby means of bolts 52 threaded into the standard 3 and passing throughcurved slots 53 provided in the block 51. The guide 49 is secured to theblock 51 by a clamp plate 54 and bolts 55 received in the block 51.Obviously, the guide 49 may be adjusted longitudinally on the block 51with respect to the mandrel 27, while the position of the block 5l canbe changed at will to deliver the stock S tangentially to mandrels 27 ofdifferent diameters.

A A ceiling point 56 is disposed opposite to the guide 49 and is clampedto a holder 57 by means of a pla-te 58 and bolts 59 coacting therewith.The ceiling point 56 is held against the pressure of the stock be ingcoiled by means of a stud 60 threaded into the holder 57 and extendinginto a slot `61 in which the ceiling point 56 is adjustable. The holder57 is supported on the standard 3 by means of lugs 62 and pins 63 whichpass through the lugs 62 and bifurcated portions ofthe holder 57 oneither side thereof. It is obvious that the coiling point 56 may bereadily adjusted with respect to the axis of the mandrel 27 fordifferent diameters of washers being coiled, the stud 60 alwaysmaintaining the ceiling point 56 in its adjusted position against thepressure of the stock being coiled.

As clearly shown in Fig. 1, the mandrel 27 is provided with a notch 64,and any one of a. number of cutters carried by the upper shaft 17, isadapted to coact with the edge of this notch 64 to sever a washer fromthe coiled stock on the mandrel 27, without interrupting the ceilingoperation. It is also evident from Fig. 1, that when the cutters 65 arefour in number, as shown, the mandrel 27 must make four completerevolutions, while the shaft 17 carrying the cutters is making only one.Adjustment of the speed of the mandrel 27 is rendered possible -by thegears 33 and 34 between the shafts 32 and 11, respectively, and it isevident that the speed relation between the 4mandrel 27 and the shaft 17may be altered by changing the ratio between the gears 33 and 34. Thuswhen washers of larger diameter are being formed on a larger man drel27a, the shaft 17 carries only two cut- `ters 65, see Figs. 6 and 7, andthe shaft 28 is driven at a speed substantially one half of the speedused for the mandrel 27 co! operating with four cutters 65. Furthermore,the gearing 37 may be readily changed to vary the speed of rotation ofthe feed roll 44, in accordance with the rate at which tige stock S isto be coiled' on the mandrel 2 Referring now to Figs. 8 and 9, anarrangement is shown whereby the cutters 65 may be readily adjusted tocompensate for wear due to continued operation. The shaft 17 provides areduced portion 17EL on which is keyed the ceiling disk 25 and also acutter head 66.- The cutter head 66 provides a number of radial slots 67and an annular groove 68 within which is seated an adjusting plate 69.The cutters 65 are clamped in the slots 67 and the adjusting 'plate 69is clamped in the groove 68 by means of a nut 70 on the shaft 17 whichtends to jam the disk 25 and the cutter head 62 against the shoulder 71at the end of the reduced portion 17a of the `shaft 17. i y

The adjusting plate 69 is rovided with a number of notches 72 in W ichthe cutters 65 bottom, and itis evident thatshould the plate 69 beturned angularly with respect to the head 66, the inclined surfaces ofthe notches 72 will tend to wedge the cutters wear, the plate 69 isremoved and turned enough to bring the next adjacent notch 74 intoregister with the pin 73 in the head 66. ln this way, all of the cutters65 are forced outwardly exactly thc same amount, so that they will cutuniformly when the machine is again operated.

From the foregoing it is apparent that by my invention l have provided amachine for the production o`f lock Washers that is 4susceptible of awide range of adjustments to accomodate it for coiling and cuttingwashers of different diameters and pitch.'

rFhe universal mounting o f the shafts 17 lwhich carry the coiling disks25 and cutters".

65 is particularly advantageous, for this mounting enables the ceilingdisks 25 and the cutters to be vertically adjusted with respect todifferent sizes of mandrels by means of the studs 23 and 24.Furtherfmore, the shafts 17 may be adjusted longitudinally to vary thepitch of the washers being coiled by the disks 25 by means of yokesembracing each shaft between collars 76. Each yoke 75 is mounted on athreaded stud 77 carrying nuts78 for determining the position ofthe yoke75 on the stud 77. By turning the nuts 78 in the same direction, a yoke75 may be moved to the left or to the right, and thereby shift theassociated shaft 17 to properly position the.

coiling. disk 25 carried thereby. When a shaft 17 is so movedlongitudinally, the splines 18 slide readily in the keyways or slots 15inside the gear sleeves 14. The different inclinations of the shafts 17when ceiling washers of different diameters and pitch is shown on asomewhat exavgerated scale in Figs. 5 and 7 it being evident that thisinclination isA small in a full sized machine. i

In operation, the machine may be caused to cut, washers of one or moreconvolutions as desired by varying the number of cutters 65 used with agiven mandrel 27 it being evident that removal of every other cutter 65in Fig.- 1 will result 'in the cutting of washers each having twoconvolutions, see

Fig. 11.y Normally, the speed of the feed roll 44 is such as to feed thestock S so that the severed ends of each washer are substantially inline; that is to say, the cutting occurs at the same place on eachconvolution, as in Fig. 10. It. is possible, however, to cut down thespeed of the roll 44 so that the delivery speed of the stock S is lessthany the peripheral speed of the mandrel 27; in this event the cutters65 c0- 4operate with the notch 64 `before a complete convolution iscoiled and each washer will have its ends spaced, as in Fig. 11. Or theroll 44 can bespeeded up to cause the ends ofthewashers to overlap eachother.

In view of the foregoing description of the operation and adjustment ofmy machine, itis apparent that my machine is adapted for the rapid andeconomical production of Washers of different sizes, pitches and length.Furthermore, the machine of the present invention differs radically fromWasher forming machines as previously constructed owing to the fact thatmy machine is particularly characterized by the continuous coiling of astrip into a spiral and the severance of separate washers from thisspiral at predetermined intervals, Without interrupting the coilingoperation. Be-

cause of the above characteristics, my machine possesses'many advantagesover prior washer-making machines employing reciprocating cuttersoperating in delinlte timed relation with means for intermittentlyfeeding and coiling the stock, since the production of such machines isinterrupted each time a washer is severed. For the same reason, themachine of the present invention possesses advantages overmachinesadapted to continuously coil the j stock and thenseparatelysever the washers from the coiled stock by a reciprocating cutter. inother words, lthe essential feature of my machine, as distinguished fromthe prior art, resides in the cooperation-between the continuouslyrotating cuttersV and the continuously -rotatingmandrel to severconvolutions of the coiled stock, as completed washers, as fast as thestock is coiled by the continuously ro-V tatably driven feed rolls andstock ceiling rolls.

claim:

1. in a machine of the class described, theA combination with arotatable mandrel, coiling disks located above and below the axis ofsaid mandrel and a positively driven roll lfor kfeeding stock betweensaid mandrel and said coiling disks to form the stock in a coil, of anannular plate rotatable with and carried by one of said coilingv diskscarrying circumferentially spaced cutters for cooperation with a cuttingedge provided on said mandrel, theperipheral speed of the cuttersbearing a fixed relation to the speed of the said mandrel, irrespectiveof the rate at which stock is delivered by said feed roll.l

2. In a machine of the class-described, the combination with av mandrel,rotatably mounted shafts carrying coiling disks whose planes of rotationare at an angle to each other above and below the aXis of said mandrel,and means for -feeding stock to said mandrel and disks for formationinto a coil, of means for adjusting said coiling disk shafts verticallyand longitudinally with respect to said mandrel to vary both thediameter and pitch of the spiral in which the stock is coiled.

3. In a machine of the class described, the combination with a mandrel,rotatably mounted shafts carrying coiling disks whose planes of rotationare at an angle to each other above and below the axis of said mandrel,and means -for feeding stock to said mandrel and disks for formationinto a coil, of means for securing longitudinal adjustment of saidcoiling disk shafts to vary the pitch of the spiral in which the stockis coiled.-

4. In a machine of the class described, the combination with a mandrel,rotatably mounted shafts carrying coiling disks whose planes of rotationare at an angle to each other above and below the axis of said mandrel,and means for feedingstock to said mandrel and disks for formation intoa coil, of means for rotatably supporting one end of each of saidcoiling disk shafts for universal as well as longitudinal adjustment.

5. In a machine of the class described, `the combination with a mandrel,rotatably mounted shafts carrying coiling disks whose planes of rotationare at an angle to each other above and below the axis of said mandrel,and means for feedingstock to said mandrel and disks for formation intoa coil, of means for rotatably supporting one end of each of saidcoiling disk shafts for universal movement, of means for rotatablysupporting the other end of said shaft for vertical adjustment, andmeans for moving said shaft longitudinally. a

6. In a machine of the class described, the.

combination with a drive shaft, a rotatable mandrel, rotatable shaftslconnected to said drive shaft and carrying coiling disks disposed aboveand below said mandrel, and feed rolls for delivering stock to saidmandrel and disks, of change gearing connecting said drive shaft t0 saidmandrel and to said feed rolls respectively.

7 In a machine of the class described, the

combination with a drive shaft, a rotatable mandrel, rotatable shaftsconnected to said drive shaft and carrying coiling disks disposed aboveand below said mandrel, and feed rolls for delivering stock to saidmandrel and disks, of change gearing connecting said drive shaft to ashaft extending at right angles to the axis of said mandrel and carryingone of said feed rolls.

8. In a machine of the class described, the combination with a driveshaft, a rotatable mandrel, rotatable shafts connected to said driveshaft and carrying coiling disks disposed above and below said mandrel,and feed rolls for delivering stock to said mandrel and disks, of meansfor driving said mandrel, coiling disks and feed rolls inunison fromsaid drive shaft, means for guiding the stock in its passage from saidfeed rolls tosaid mandrel, and a stationary coiling tool disposedbetween said disks opposite to said guide.

9. In a machine of the class described, the combination with a driveshaft, a rotatable mandrel, rotatable shafts connected to said driveshaft and carrying coiling disks disposed above and below said mandrel,and feed rolls for delivering stock to said inandrel and disks, of meansfor driving said mandrel, coiling disks and feed rolls in unison fromsaid drive shaft, means for guiding the stock in its passage from saidfeed rolls to said mandrel, and a stationary coiling tool disposedbetween said disks opposite to said guide, said disks, guiding means andtool all being adjustable with respect to said mandrel for coilingspirals of different diameter.

l0. In a machine of the class described, the combination with a mandrel,rotatably driven shafts extending above and below said mandrel, saidshafts being rotatable at an angle to each other, coiling disks carriedby said shafts cooperating with said mandrel for coiling stock into aspiral on said mandrel, means for adjusting said shafts to adapt saiddisks for the formation of spirals of different pitch and diameter, anda cutter rotatable with and carried by one of said coiling disks adaptedto cooperate with said mandrel to sever the coiled stock atpredetermined intervals.

11. In a machine of the class described, 4

the combination with a mandrel, rotatably driven shafts extending aboveand below said mandrel, said shafts being rotatable at an angle to eachother, coiling disks carried by said shafts cooperating with saidmandrel for coiling stock into a spiral on said mandrel, means foradjusting said shafts to Iadapt said disks for the formation of spiralsof different pitch and diameter, and an annular plate mounted on one ofsaid shafts adjacent to a coiling disk carrying circumferentially spacedcutters for cooperation with a cutting edge provided on said mandrel.

12, In a machine of the class described, the combination with rotatablydriven feed rolls, a rotatably driven mandrel roviding a cutting edge,and rotatably driven coiling rolls arranged'about the axis of saidmandrel,V the cooperation between said feed rolls, mandrel and coilingrolls being adapt ed to continuously coilA stock into a spiral, of acutter carried by and rotatable with one of said coiling rolls adaptedby its rotation to cooperate with the cutting edge of said mandrel atpredetermined intervals during the continuous coiling of the spiral tosever separate convolutions of said spiral.

FRANK H. SLEEPER.

